Mooring mast or mooring gear for lighter-than-air aircraft



March 27,1928.

, B. N. WALLIS MOORING MAST OR MOORING GEAR FOR LIGHTER-THAN-AIR AIRCRAFT Filed Jan. 4, 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet l March 27, 1928.

B. N. WALLIS MOQRING MAST OR MOORING GEAR FOR LIGHTER-THAN-AIR AIRCRAFT Filed Jan.

March 27; 1 928.

B. N. WALLIS MOORING MAST 0R NQORING GEAR FOR LIGHTER-THAN-AIR AIRCRAFT Filed Jan. 4, 192

4 Sheets-Sheet 5 WAG March 21. 1928.

B. N. WALLIS MOORING MAST 0R 'MOORING GEAR FOR LIGHTER AIRAIRCRAFT Filed Jan. 4, 2

4 heets-Sheet 4 Fatented Mar. 27, 1928. I i

UNITED STATES PATENT -F Fl CE'.--

BARNES NEVILLE WALLIS, OF WESTMINSTER, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR- TO A IRSHIP GUARANTEE COMPANY LIMITED, 01'! LONDON; ENGLAND;A BRITI-SH- COMPANY.

MOORING MAST GR MQORING GEAR FOR LIGH T ER THAN-AIR AIRCRAFT;

Application filed January 4, 1926, Serial No. 791076, and" in Great Britain January 12, 1925.

This invention relates to mooring masts or mooring gear for lighter-than-a-ir aircraft, hereinafter referred to as airships.

For the'purpose of mooring an airship 6 to a mooring mast it has been proposedto provide a fitting on the nose of theairship. which is adapted to be coupled'toa fitting atthe top of the mast, the airship being adapted to be drawn into contact with the fitting on the mast head by means of a main anchoring or hauling down cable. a

It has been found that, if a single cable is employed to draw the nose of the airship towards the mast, the airship, as soon as it l5 approaches to within a certain distance of the mast, tends to kite or set up lateral hunting or over-r1sing forward movements,

and, in order to prevent such dangerous movements of the ship it has been proposed to provide, in addition to the main anchoring or hauling down'cable, a'pair of side guy ropes or cables, each of which is attached at one of its ends to the noseof the airship, the other ends of the guy ropes being attached to anchor points situated to leeward of the mast and respectively to port and starboard of the airship, said anchor points being either provided on the ground or being situated on laterally projecting members on the mooring mast,

According to one feature of the present invention, and, in lieu of the customary single main hauling cable and the usual side guys, we provide a bridle composed of a pair of ropes or cables which extend from opposite sides of the noseof the airship and which are brought together, or'close-to one another, at their other ends, such ropes or cables being adapted to be'simultaneously wound in so as to haul down the airship untilit reaches, '01. is brought into close proximity to, the mooring mast or other anchoring point. It lias'been found that, if an, airship is hauled down by a bridle comcables, the use of side guy ropes or cables can be dispensedwith and the airship may he brought within any desired distance of the mooring mast or otheranchoringpoint nosed as aforesaid of a Jair 0f ro es or without danger of over-riding, sailing or' fouling the same. If, during the hauling in of the airship, its engines are run astern the stability of the vessel While being brought to=the mast is increased;

According to a further feature of thepresent invention and instead of rig-idly attae1i-- ing the nose of the airship to a fitting on the mooringmast, the airship isa'dapte'd to be moored in a' non-rigid manner Within a rotatable cradle situated on the mast and preferably disposed in ahorizontal plane, so that thea-irship, when in position within the cradle, floats-- with a certain degree of flexibility relatively to the mast. To this end the saidcradle may be constituted by a pair of projecting andhorizont'ally disposed arms ormembers located ona: revolving portion at the top of the mast, or said arms may be attached to the mast itself-in cases where the whole structure is rotatably mounted on a foot step hearing; so that the arms oan be brought into any desired position relatively to an approaching airship. The armsare set at asuitable a'ngl'e, such as 90, relatively to one another, and their inner endsare'pneferab'ly spaced apart so as to obtain a: cantilever effect. When the nose of the airship has been'h-auled down, for example from points situated at the centre of the mast and positioned at a suitable dis- 80 tance such'as 30 feet above the said'arms', un til it islocatedat a suitab1ed-istance(e. g. 60

or feet above sai darms) l ropesor cables are letdown ifl-OlflthBailSlllp'Ol' drawnout by the bridle ropes, from points situated on opposite sides'of the nose" thereof. Said ropes "maybe caught byoperators and ati tached to other mooring ropes or "cables, H hereinafter termedmooring warps, carried on the arms of the mast, the ropes being then drawn upso that they carrythe mooring'Warps-w-ith thern and the'mooring warps being then attached to fittings located on either side of the nose of the airship con tig-uous-tothe part thereof through which the main-hauling doW-n" ropes are passed. Auxiliary hauling down gear such as winches or ca-pstans, are provided, for example,- on

said arms, and on the winches being actuated the airship is hauled down further by means of the mooring warps attached to each side of the nose thereof until it is positioned between the said projecting arms. Alternatively ropes or cables may be let down from points situated'on opposite sides of the nose of the ship, said cables being caught by operators positioned on the arms and led respectively through fairleads or the like at the extremity of each arm to suitable hauling down gear, such as winches or capstans also situated for example on said arms. On the winches being actuated the airship is hauled down further until it is positioned immediately above or between the said projecting arms, whereupon the mooring warps winch havebeen prepared n readiness and which are carried respectively on each oi the said arms are attached to anchorpoints such as hooks or shackles .situatedon opposite sides of the nose of the ship, said warps or cables being thentightened or wound in as before by means of winches or the like so as to hauldown the airship and simultaneously bring the same closely within the cradle. The main hauling. down ropes, or,

ments which have created trouble inother systems. v

- In addition to the auxiliary hauling down cables a further pair of cables (hereinafter termed the back haul cables), may be let down from a single point or from points located on opposite sides of the nose of the airship in frontot the points from which the auxiliary hauling cables are let down .or to which-the mooring warp are attached,

said back haul cables being received by other operators on the armswho take up theslack of the W saidcables as theairship isdrawn down to the cradle. Should, however, a dangerous movement of the airship be initiated the winding down operation is stopped and said other operators simultaneously locate a bight of each of the back haul cables round anchoring points 'oneach arm. The airship is thus steadied by being held at two fixed points until such dangerous movement ceases so that anytende-ncy to foul or over-ride the mast is thereby prevented.

In order that the said invention may be clelarly understood and readily carried into effect, the same will now be described more fully, with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show, partly diagrammatically, a mooring mast and its associated hauling down and mooring ropes constructed and operating according to the present invention, together with a diagrammatic illustration of one method of utilizing the same to haul down an airship and attach it in the moored position to the mooring mast the nose only of the airship being shown I Figure 1 is a side elevation of the mooring mast mounted upon a monitor, and shows the airship in the act of being hauled down into the moored position.

Figure 2 is a plan View showing the bridle ropes in full lines, (the mast being omitted), and in, dotted lines, the limiting posi tion of the bridle ropes after they have entered themast head guide pulleys. I

Figure a side elevation showing the airship after it has been hauled down into close proximity to the mooring mast by means of the bridle ropes as also the mooring warps in the act of being drawn up from the projecting armsof the, mast in order that they may be attached to opposite sides of the nose of the airship, and

Figure 4 is a plan of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is an elevation;

Figure 6 is a side elevation, and

Figure 7 is'a plan, showing the mooring warps attached to opposite sides of thenoso of the airship, I

Figure 8 is an elevation,

Figure .9 is a side elevation, and

Figure 10 a plan showing the airship in the act 01 being hauled down into the moored position.

Figure 11 is a side elevation,

Figure 12 is a plan, and

Figure 13 is an elevation showing the airship in the moored position.

Figure 14 is a sectional elevation showing more clearly certain details of the rotating head of a slightly modified form of mooring mast the airship being in the moored position;

Figure 14: is a front view of the guide pulleys for the main hauling down ropes.

Figure 15 is a. plan of Figure 14, and F igure 15 is a detail view showing in end view the pulleys and bollards provided at the extremities of each arm of the mast.

Figure 16 is a sectional elevation on an enlarged scale of the mast head combined roller and thrust bearing, and

Figure 17 is a section on an enlarged scale of one of the rollers on the rotating mast h .ilCl. v

The main hauling down rope comprises a single portion a which may for example be 500 or 600 feet in length, and which is joined to a bridle portion formed by two Ill! ropes aiyat running to winches or mooring points (1%,.(1? situated on opposite: sides of the nose. of the: airship, 13, preferably. at the first transverse frame 6'. 'lhelength-of' the bridle 4 portion a a can: be varied as may be found necessarybut. approximately150 feet is; a suitable length. It is considered that this length is sufficient to. damp out lateral oscillations even when the ship is'at a considerable distance from the mooring mast for, in the event oftheship getting off wind under these conditions, asla-rge restoringlmoment is set up owing'to the slackening of the weather bridle rope.. The'bridle a a? is stowed on suitable winches in the airship while the single ropea "is carriedon av further winch conveniently situated at the bottom of. the first transverse frame, the singlerope a and double ropes a a being paid out in the usual manner whenit is desired to effect a landing. Ac'cordingto this embodiment of the invention no other apparatus iscarried in the airship, herself but hooks, shacklesor their equivalentv are provided in theneighbourhood ofthe two points aflnat'to which-the bridle ropes a a are attached, for the connection. thereto of the masthead mooring warps B andfG; The mooring-warps B. andC are carried on each of the two arms 7', f of the mooring mast F, and D, D are ropes carriedon vtheairship which are attached respectively to each rope a of the bridle, these. ropes I),.D "being paid out by the bridle when the latter is well within the mast head pulleys and being attached by operators on the mast to the ropes B and C, the ropes D, D'beingthen hauled up to the airship and. the warps Band C attached to hooks or shackles on. opposite sides of the nose of the airship.

The mooring mast F comprises a fixed portionf and a rotatablezportion 7' which lattercarries'the two arms 7, f the-rotating portion f consisting'of a four sided pyramidcarried on roller and. thrust bearings G' at the apex whereit rests upon thefixed por tion F, the construction. of. the roller and thrust bearing being clearly shown at Figure 16. Two platform levels are provided, the upper one i being situated. at a convenient height for the eont-rolplatform and the lower one 7 at the base of the pyramid forming a landing level for the passenger lift. At the upper platform fare placedla powerful brake and locking gear for pre- Venting rotation of the movable portion f when desired, and provision can also be made for a governor or automatic type of brake designed to check rotation of the masthead in a smooth and easy manner under the influence of lateral pull. from the airship during the process of landing. The lower platform is utilized as a: base for a rollerv H androller path H which, taken in conjunction with the upper journal and thrust 3&1

races :Gr, stabilizes the moving! portion f on. the fixed portion 7; The large distance zsepe Y arating the bearing; systemsi ensures: light frictional loadingwhenthe mastiheadmis-in operation. I 1 t From the pyramid thus formed thewarms f, project horizontally making an-angleof with each other along their inner edges, these arms being of' such dimensions-that each forms an enclosed passage giving-access to the airship at the. same level as the ac cess platform in the ship herself.

At the extremities of the arms and also at a point somewhatnearer to theaxis of'the IIILISiYSUltablG. fairleads z, 2'', pulleys 2' i and bollards iii? are provided for running in the mast head warps, whilethe apex of the 'pyramid carries guide pulleys j, y ofvlargedr mensions for the -main hauling: ropes; of, 1a The top bearing T of the rotatingrportion is made in the form of a-1 hollow shaft 9} of approximately one foot in diameter through which the main haulingropesaf, a passlto a winding engine a situated' at the 'foot' of the mast. The ropes pass through: a;guide tube fixed in the passenger lift L (Figurexlfl) which is necessarily eccentrica-lly mounted; in the mast so as to accommodate the counterweight Z. bridle and hauling downropes provided on the airship thus makes it possible-to provide a single drum winding enginea of the-usual type atthe. mast foot so. that the advantage of the bridle system is secured, without the additional complication of having to. wind twin ropes.

The controls: for the Winding engine are situated on the upper platform-f of; the rotating portion f? of the mooring mast.

Two auxiliary winding-engines. or motors of small size, for example 10' H: P. each," are situated either atthe masthead as shown.- or at the mast foot for operating-the mooring warps B and C. The ropes C,'G.1nay be connected. to two winding drums M operated by one auxiliary motor, while the ropes B, B are connected to other drums MJ operatechby a second auxiliary motor, suitable fairleads and pulleys being provided. g

The mast illustratedis one which hasbeen designedv for'installation on a monitor" but the system is equally applicable to land installations in which case the mast may be either a steel or ferro-concrete structure.

The method ofoperationisin both cases the same. 7

When carryingout a landing-by the aforesaid system the main hauling-in rope a is dropped-from the airship to a marked-position on the ground to which the masthead rope has been laid in the usual manner. In the case of a seaoperation themasthead rope would be'carried by a motor boatand the ships rope a would beprovided with=a floating buoy which would bepicked up by A the boats crew. When connection has been established, hauling-in is begun and .is' carried-on until the bridleportion a a ,ofthe airships rope a is well within the masthead pulleys as illustrated at m Figure 1. hen the position shown in this figure has been reached the bridle ropes a (1 carry out with them automatically the two hemp lines D, D, oneon either log of the bridle which are detached by attendants at the masthead and coupled respectively. to the shackle fitting of the ropes B and C lying in readiness on the projecting arms 7', I v r The hemp ropes D, D are then hauled up into the airship carrying with them the ropes B and C, the latter ropes being made fast at the'special positions providedat the first transverse frame.

At the same time hauling onthe main rope a is-proceeded with until the ships bridle a a has entered the masthead far as the point 11 (Figure 1). A true view of the bridle under these conditions is given in plan view at Figure 2. VVhen' the bridle ropes reach the limiting position, hauling on the main engine a ceases and the length of bridle rope stretching between the masthead and'the ship remains constant for all furtheroperations. The auxiliary motors controlling-the winding drums M, M are now put in operation and. hauling down commences, the principal work being done in the first instance by the-motor connected to the drum M on which the mooring warp C is Wound. When once theairship has passed the position in which the bridle ropes are approximately horizontal, the ropes C quickly provide a restraint to forward motion. and the ship as she approaches closer to the masthead enters what may be termed a safety Zone when the length of ropes C become such that whatever the relative motion of the mast and ship may be it is impossible for fouling to occur. I

An investigation of the stresses ,in the various ropes during the intermediate stages illustrated in Figures 5 to 10 will show, however, that the airship is held in an essentially stable manner, all ropes being kept continuously in tension under the influence of drag from the astern running propellers.

After passing the stage illustrated in Figures 8, 9 and 10 the ropes C become a safety device only and hauling down to the final position is carried out by ropes B, the motor attached to ropes C following up as necessary. The advantage of using a hydraulic motor over other. types will be appreciated in this connection as this form of power plant enables a constant following up tension to be maintained by the motor without further attention on the part of the operator. Hauling down proceeds on ropes B until the levels of the landing platforms in the ship and on the masthead coincide (Figures ll to 15). It should be noted that during the process ofhauling down no attention Whatever. is required. to the main hauling ropes, as the length of the bridle automatically ensures that the ship shall come home in the correct position. i

An examination of the system of ropes illustrated in Figures 11 to l?) will show that the vessel is now permanently secured by a three point suspension on either side and should only a short stay at the masthead be anticipated it is merely necessary to lock the drums on the winding engines to secure the ship in the position shown. F or a prolonged stay or in the event of bad weather, arrangements are provided for replacing the hauling ropes and mooring warps by :permanent and heavy warps carried on the masthead. These warps may consist of a wire cable provided with a length of adjusting chaincable and bottle screws for tensioning, the hauling ropes a and a and the mooring. warps B and C on each side of the ship being attached to a single shackle at the ship end, and being secured in close proximity to the points from which the hauling ropes themselves are led at the mast end. v

A modified method of mooring the airship to that illustrated withv reference to the drawing consists in providing each laterally projecting arm, towards its inner end, and in addition to the capstans for hauling down the airship after it has been brought into located over the hook, shackle or other fitting on each side of the nose of the vessel when the latter has been'hauled down to about platform level. In order to cause the warps to complete the hauling down movement of the airship to platform level, each warp, instead of being led directly from one winch drum to the other may be formed in two portions, each portion from one of the winch drums being brought round a V pulley and its ends connected to a point on the arm situated at some distance below .platform level. The two pulleys may be con-.

nected together by an eye or shackle adapted to be looped over the fitting on the nose of the airship, or instead of using two pulleys a single pulley may be employed, a connection being taken as before from onecable to a fixed point on the arm and the end of the'cable from the other winch drum being connected directly to the'pulley. Owling ito either of these arrangements :the ship Will be .hauled down slightly at the same time as it isbeing brought into the space between the said 'arms; The airship itself may be ifitteclrat the foremost transverse frame with capstans, or,:alternatively, with a winch havingaipair oft drums, orelse a pairof' winches may be Pl'OViClQClyOVQI each drum of which theica'bles of the bridle are Wound, the cables 'being adapted to be led through fairleads 'or the like on each side of thei'nose of the ship. The outer ends ofthe bridle cables may be joined together at their ends by shackles and stowed dur. ing flight in a suitabletrap 'releasecapable ofvbeing operated from theieontrol position,

the latter being conveniently positioned within the nose of-the ship. i

The operation ofithis last-mentioned modified arrangement is as idliowsz-eOn the'airship approaching the mooring mast, the bridle eablesare released from the trap previouslyreferred to on thenoseof the airship,

and connected :to a pair of cables which are ledround the guide pulleys at thetop of -the mast to the winding engineszorwinches. To facilitate thisoperation the ends of the bridle ropes may be-detachably connected together and painted respectively red and green or marked in some other "distinctive manner so as to indicate the-side ot-the ship from which they are led, and a sandbag or buoy may be attached thereto so that the cable endsmayreadily' be picked up by an operator on land, or, in cases whereithe mooring mast is provided on-a vesselat sea, by means ofa fast boat, and readilyconnected to the ends ofthe correspondingly marked ;pair of ropesyfrom the masthead. Alternatively, the bridle-e-ablesmay be connected to the masthead cables, without the intervention-off alanding party -or 3a fast motor boat,- by directing the airship slowly across the mast with the bridlecables-hanging down, so that they-are swung between the projecting arms of the rotating head, whereupon they are :picked =upby attendants and secured to the ends-of the masthead cables. i The ship is then-hauledzin by means of'the' winch or winding engine situated at V the foot of. the mast until it is situated at a suitable'distance above themastheadl. The

hauling in of the bridle cables isflthen' stopped so that. the airship rides on the bridle cables, for example, at approximately feet-from the :m asthead and .with the bridle cables, making an angle of about 45 therewith'and at a height of about; or feet above the projecting'arms. From large gangway ports near the poi-nts of attachment for the bridle cables'light pilot ropes or the like to which are attachedthe-auxiliary hauling down cables, asalso back haul'ficables where such areused, may then be thrown across each of the.. pro ect1ng armssltuated below,these ropes being caught by attendants. After the pilot ropes which areattached to the auxiliary hauling down cables have been passed throughthe :t'airleads and round the capstans, the ship hauled down until it is situated above or between the laterally projecting arms, whereupon the warps are connected by theattendantson the platform to the fittings on each side of the ship and the warp winches are actuated so as to draw the ship. down to platform level and make it fast between the projecting arms of the mooring mast.v An ordinary type of ga-ngway can then be runaboard on either. side so as to establish double communication betweenthe ship and the platform and lift on the masthead. On leaving the, mast,

quick rel-eases are operated to *free the shackle point "from the warpcables so-as to allow the ship to: floatup and move astern. The operation of releasing the airship by the methodldescribed with reference to the accompanying drawings may be performed as follows :"Onoccasionswhen it has not been necessary to apply the system of warp referred toabove, therelease of the ship is carriedout in the following manner. The fitting towhieh the ropesB and C are at tached at each side of the airship may consist of a standard typeof slip, the two sides being operated simultaneously from a central control position inasimilar mannerto that employed: when slipping the falls ofa boat'at sea. Theairship then remains at tached'to the mooring mast by'her bridle ropea a and will rise upwards and astern into the position,illustrated injFigures -.3

.and 4:- ;The bridle rope will alreadyhave been prepared for release, as after landing, astQPper isplace'don thebridle at the point of the-splice. -Access to this pointinside the mooring mastis. readily'attained by suitable operation of the lift, and the tension being removed from the drum of the main winding engine, the shackleqtolnmg thesingle rope a of the airshipt'othesingle rope 1 of the winding engine can be uncoupled and reunited by means of .asmallpiece oftwine. The brake is again applied to the drum of the winding engine shortly before releasing thestopper rope when a ship is about to leave the mast, and after the slipping of the ropes Band C the ship is eased astern on the bridle: a a? by mea'ns of the brake on the winding engine drum. 1

Should'everything prove in order, the ship .is finally to -,proceed, and ,her haulingin ropea r drawsout of mooring mast,

snapping thmtwine coupling in the process;

Re-stowage o'f the. ships hauling down ropes and mooring warps is thenzcacried out in the usual manner *WllllSllll'l flight. t y

Should the permanent masthead warps have'been in use the :ships'briclle rope will have been stowed whilst at the masthead and in this case slipping ofthe mooring warps is carried out simultaneously on both sides of the ship by means of the gear above referred to, it being noted that the three ropes on each side are secured toa single fitting. Apparatus for recording the vertical re-action at the nose of the ship may be provided in the fittings for the attachment of the ropes.

The system of ropes shown has been designed with the express object of reducing the stress set up by heavy and gusty winds .in the airships structure when the airship is secured to the mast. Ample factors of safety have been allowed under all conditions. The limiting cases have been taken as hauling-in in a gusty wind of M. P. H.; and when secured'it has been assumed that the ship'may oscillate through an angle of 20 under the influence of a wind'of equal intensity. r g

It should be noted that the torsional restraint imposed upon the airship'is of distinct advantagein reducing the stresses set up when yawing, and owing to the large diameter of the ship at the points of attachment the resultant loading induced in both ship and mast is of almost negligible amount. 7

The system of mooring forming the subject of the present invention has the advantage that, when landing on a mast carried on a floating base at sea, both the cables (1 a comprising the bridle can be picked up as a single unit, while the method of hauling in the airship by means of a. bridle to the masthead gives complete stability and eliminates oscillating movements systems. When in the position on themasthead the floating airship is not attached in a rigid manner,- as it is capable of slight floating movements although restrained against forward or rearward movements. Should the ship sink by the tail a suitable device may be provided for automatically bringing it back to a level keel. Passengers can also be landed through the nose'of the airship and carried by means of a lift to the level of embarkation, While complete circulation of passengers can be provided for so as to enable them to be embarked and disembarked simultaneously, thus shortening the 'durationof stoppage at the mast; The system also enables the whole of the control apparatus to be kept under constant supervision and to be readily accessible for such repairs as may be necessary. Furthermore, the mooring mast can be fitted with a lightning conductor P some to 100 feet in height, a. point which is of considerable importance if the mast is intended for use intropical; countries. Mooring an airship under all conditions to ca mast fitted to a floating base such as a monitor is also renwhichhave created trouble in the past in other ship of the rigid type to the smallest sea scout of the non-rigid type.

A further advantage of this new system of mooring is that although in the single wire system and when mooring to a mast carried in asea-going' vessel, it is necessary that during theactual process of mooring the latter is either steaming into or lying with its bow pointing directly to the wind, with the bridle method'herein described, such aprocedure is unnecessary, for mooring can be satisfactorily carried out whether the sea going vessel be at anchor lying off the Wind or underway and not steaming directly into thewind i What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:'-

' 1. Apparatus for mooringflighteFthanair aircraft comprising a 'mooring mast, winding gear assocated with said mooring mast, a pair of cables extendingfrom opposite sides of the aircraft which is to be moored, the free ends of said cables being simultaneously wound in during the mooring operation by said winding gear so as to haul down the aircraft until it is brought into close proximity to the mooring mast;

2..Apparat us for mooring lighter-thanair aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a cradle at the top of said mooring mast, winding gear associated with said mooring mast, a pair of cables extending from opposite sides of the aircraft which is to be moored,the free ends of saidcables being simultaneously wound in during the mooring operation by said winding gear so as to haul down the aircraft until it is brought into "close proximity to the mooring mast andlocated above said cradle. 3.'Apparatus for mooring lighter-thaw air aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a rotatable cradle at the top of said mooring mast, winding gear associated with said mooring mast, a pair of cables extending from opposite sides of the aircraft which is to be moored, the free ends of said cables being simultaneously wound in during the mooring operation by said winding gear so as to haul down the aircraft until it is brought into close proximity to the mooring mast and the nose thereof located above said rotatable cradle.

1. Apparatus for mooring lighter-thanair aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a cradle at the top' of said 1 mooring mast, Windinggear associated with said mooring mast, a' pair of cables extending from opposite sides of the nose of the aircraft which is to be moored, the free ends of said cables being simultaneously wound in during the l sser-s8 g gear so as to haul down the aircraft until it is,

brought into close proximity to-the mooring mast and the nose thereof located above said cradle, and means- 'forh-auling down the airship until the nose thereof is located within said cradle.

5. Apparatus for mooring lighter-than-air aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a cradle at the top of said mooring mast, Winding gear associated with said mooring mast, a pair of cables extending from opposite sides of the nose of the aircraft which is to be moored, the free ends of said cables being simultaneously wound in during the mooring operation by saidwinding gear so as to haul down the aircraft until it is brought into close proximity to the mooring mast and the nose thereof located above said cradle, means for hauling down the airship until the nose thereof is located within said cradle, and means for attaching the airship to said cradle.

6. Apparatus for mooring lighter-than-air aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a pair of projecting and horizontally disposed arms attached to a rotatable portion at the top of the said mooring mast, means for rotating said portion at the top of the mooring mast, a pair of cables extending from opposite sides of the aircraft which is to be moored, the free ends of said cables being brought from the aircraft to the mast and simultaneously wound in by said winding gear so as to haul down the aircraft until it is brought into close proximity to the mast.

7 Apparatus for mooring lighter-than-air aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a pair of guide pulleys at the top of said mooring mast, winding gear associated with said mast, a cradle on said mast, and a pair of cables extending from opposite sides of the aircraft which .is to be moorechthe free ends of said cables being brought from the aircraft to the mast and simultaneously Wound over said pulleys by said winding gear so as to haul down the aircraft until it is brought into close rox'imity to the mast.

8. i pparatus for mooring lighter-than-air aircraft comprising a mooringmast, a pair of guide pulleys at the top of said mooring mast, winding gear associated with said mast, a cradle on said mast, a pair of cables extending from opposite sides of the aircraft which is to be moored, the free ends of said cables being brought from the aircraft to the mast and simultaneously wound over said pulleys by said winding gear so as to haul down the aircraft until it is brought into close proximity to the mast and means for hauling down the nose of the airship still further until it is located within said cradle.

9. Apparatus for mooring lighter-than-air aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a pair brought into close proximity to the mast,

the free ends of said main cables being of guide pulleys at the' top of said mooring mast win'ding gear associated with said mast, va cradleon said-mast, a pair oficables extending-from opposite sides of the aircraft which is a) be moored, the free ends ofsaid cablesbeing"brought from the aircraft 'to the mast and simultaneously wound over said pulleys by said Winding gear so as to haul down the aircraft until it is i means for hauling down the nose of the airship still further until itis located within said cradle and means for attaching the aircraft to the said cradle.

10. Apparatus for mooring lighter-thanair aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a" pairof guide pulleys at the top of said mooring mast, winding gear at the base of said mast, apair of projecting and horizontal arms rotatably attached to said mooring mast and located beneath said pulleys, a pair of main cables extending from opposite sides of the aircraft which is to be moored the free ends of said inain'cables being brought to said mast and simultaneously wound in over said pulleys by said winding. gear so as to haul downthe aircraft until it is .brought into close proximity to the mast, and auxiliary cables associated with each of said projecting arms for hauling down the aircraft still further until the nose thereof is located above said arms.

11. Apparatus for mooring lighter-thanair aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a pair of guide pulleys located at the top of said mooring mast, winding gear at the base of said mast, a pair of projecting and horizontal arms rotatably attached .to said mooring mast and located beneath said pulleys, a pair of main cables extending from opposite sides of the aircraft which is to be moored, the free ends of said main cables being brought to said mast and simultaneously wound in over saidpulleys by said winding gear so asto haul down the aircraft until it no is brought into close proximity'to the mast, auxiliary cables associated wlth each of said projecting arms for hauling down the aircraft still further until the nose thereof is located above said arms, and back haul cables extending between the aircraft and the mast the slack of which is taken in as the aircraft is hauled downinto position between the said arms.

12. Apparatus for mooring lighter-thanair aircraft comprising a mooring mast, a pair of guide pulleys located at the top of said mooring mast, winding gear at the base of said mast, a pair of projecting and horizontal arms rotatably attached to said mooring mast and located beneath said pulleys, a pair of main cables extending from opposite sides of the aircraft which is to be moored,

brought to said mast and simultaneously Wound in' over said pulleys bysaicl winding gear sons to haul down the aircraft until it is brought into close proximity to the mast, auxiliary cables associated With each of said projecting arms for hauling down the aircraft still further until the nose thereof is located abovesaid arms, and mooring warps on each ofsaicl arms adaptedfitobe attached to the nose o1 the aircraft When located above said arms for hauling down the airship and mooring her in final position between the said arms.

BARNES NEVILLE WALLIS: 

